Monday, January 9, 2017

GONE & FORGOTTEN examines the classic MICRONAUTS comic series.

The Micronauts team does not do a stellar job of grabbing my personal sympathies right out of the gate. The Micronauts saga begins with open rebellion on "Homeworld," the crown jewel of the Microverse. We find Prince Argon and Princess Mari (I put the stress on the second syllable, myself, as in "Ma-RI-oh-net") fleeing for their lives from a violent armed rebellion. Who are the rabble who dare rise up against the "hereditary rulers" of Homeworld? Well -- everyone. "The elite of Homeworld has been overthrown -- not by a small body of insurgents, but by an entire world!" Well, with that being said, I guess I'm instinctively on the rebellion's side? A small band of elite, hereditary rulers being violently unseated by the entire population which they once ruled doesn't necessarily encourage a lot of empathy on my part, sight unseen. As a matter of fact, I sort of feel like joining 'em. "DOWN WITH ARGON! DOWN WITH ALL THE OTHER DUMB ELEMENTS! UP WITH WHATEVER WE'RE DOING!" The politics of the Micronauts' universe are laid out in quick succession. Mari and Argon are the last surviving members of the royal family of Homeworld, aided by their "roboid" servant Microtron. Meanwhile, an extremist/fundamentalist junta has become a popular movement and led the population into active rebellion, aided by the alien super-warriors The Acroyears and helmed by the black-masked, heavily armored and sometimes-a-centaur Baron Karza.